Far Out Friday

I'm such a sucker for cute notepads and schedulers.
I discovered Kosney while I was in Korea and quickly fell in love.

Not only did they have great stationary, but they had some good CD mixes. I found a radio station that plays fun music.

My newest infatuation is this weekly scheduler:

Crippling Christianity

Beyond the current economic situation, news of unemployment normally takes a back seat to fantastic news like puppies caught in storm drains and polar bear attacks at the local zoo. While, especially now, many would and have conjectured/commented on the current economic situation, I write not in reference to the situation that our world is currently facing, but rather, in generalities.

I've long advocated the fight against institutional international poverty over domestic partially because the grips of poverty in developing nations insinuate a stronger hold than in cases of domestic poverty. My leaning may be a result of hope in the American Dream and the idealistic thought that everyone is able to pull up their bootstraps if they just pull hard enough.

While I still do have a stronger affinity for restoring economic justice internationally, there is one topic that I would like to comment on that has caused me a great deal of frustration. Lest the reader would think that I tout myself as immune to affecting this problem, I would like to state that some of my concern stems from my own inaction.

My interest in poverty and the role that Christians play in the institution led me to read John Stott's Our Social & Sexual Revolution: Major Issues for a New Century. The most recent chapter I read focused on the value of work and the problem of unemployment. Stott articulates how biblically, work is intended for the self-fulfillment of the individual, service to others and service to God. Being such an integral part of life, the absence of work is "a serious assault on our humanness."[1] Regardless of whether or not the reader agrees with the idea of work as a whole or even partial fulfillment of humanity, it would be safe to say that the absence of work, or unemployment can be devastating to the individual as well as society.

To take the biblical stance that work "is an indispensable element in God's original purpose for human beings," would require an even stronger stance against the holds of unemployment.[2]

What is it that stands in the way of eliminating unemployment? “It is [unrestrained] greed which keeps taxes low and interest rates high, crippling industrial recovery which we need to restore full employment.”[3]

I have often thought how contradictory mainstream Christian thought is in the face of eternal biblical principles. The biblical principles that Christians supposedly hold dear often don’t coincide with current political practices that would in fact support those ideals.

If as Christians, we find ourselves agreeing that work serves even a portion of the purpose for which we were created, then we would be guilty if we didn’t concern ourselves with unemployment. Stott suggests that industrial recovery would come from a stronger investment in creating employment in both private and public sectors. Especially in the public sector, the creation of new jobs would obviously require some amount of sacrifice from American tax-payers.

I don’t claim to be an economist and neither do I write about economics – rather I write about the underlying principles of the problem of unemployment.

“The problem of unemployment is neither economic nor political, but moral and spiritual.”[4]

Regardless of the solution to unemployment, Christians should be at the forefront of sacrifice. How do we expect to heal the sores of unemployment without some sacrifice?



[1] Stott, John. Our Social & Sexual Revolution: Major Issues for a New Century. 3rd Ed. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1999. 25-26.
[2] Ibid. 35.
[3] Ibid. 35
[4] Ibid. 36.

Far Out Friday

I am so excited to present this Friday's great find!

With spring, summer and some sun in Seattle coming soon, it's the perfect time to introduce solar lighting on those bleak patios!

I saw this very modern solar lantern in a magazine the other day . . .

Priced at $39.99, I thought our patio would look so celebratory with this very fun and practical lighting from Allsop Home & Garden (stores located throughout the US).

Coincidentally, while I was doing some research, I learned that IKEA just introduced some solar lighting of their own! For about half the price, these pieces are more simple, yet have the same features as those made from Allsop Home & Garden.

Of course there are some other designs that suit all tastes, but I thought these were more than fun enough.

Left Butt Cheeks

United Airlines has officially decided that left butt cheeks must now fork up a ticket. Following the lead of Southwest and Delta Airlines, United Air is now requiring larger customers to purchase an additional ticket for additional space – regardless of whether or not empty seats are present.

In an effort to please their customers, United Airlines has found itself on the top of a slope. How slippery is it going to be? What other social stigma is going to be barred from sitting too close?

I personally have a problem with people who breathe too loudly. The wheezing and sudden release of air drives me insane. Maybe these airlines will create a separate area of the plane for wheezers. Fingers crossed.

Far Out Friday

Another lovely Friday warrants another lovely love.

Create your own Polaroids without the Polaroid.

Skip the Dryer

Skip the dryer April 19 on National Hanging Out Day!

In another effort to add to the trite cliche of "being green," I entreat you to cast away your dryer - at least for a day. Greater Seattle residents - just because you live in Seattle doesn't mean you can't line dry your clothes.

Opting for line-drying doesn't mean having to set up an elaborate hang-dry system in your yard. Instead, try transforming what you already have - inside your home.

• - Make practical use out of art. (Once a month my decorative bundle of sticks turns into a scivies dryer.)
• - Be more industrious with things you use every day. (Use your door knobs, curtain rods and doorframes to hang hangers.)

Fear not for you (and the earth) will reap rewards . . .

• - Brunch for you and a friend at Maltby Cafe as a result of lowered energy costs (savings could equal up to $20 - $25)
• - A few less trips to buy socks as a result of longer lasting clothes (especially clothes with spandex or lycra)
• - Preserved brain cells as a result of decreased bleach usage (considering that sunlight is a "natural bleach")
• - A nice smelling room

Happy National Hanging Out Day!

Far Out Friday

Because I love Fridays, here's something lovely . . .



"How to Reduce your Chances of Being a Terror Victim," XX Teens
This was straight from an article that Fox News published in 2003.

I don't know what's more hilarious - the song or the article.

Watch yourself. Terrorists love car bombs.

Stop Buying Crap!

I heard somewhere that all the feminine hygiene products used in one year can cover the surface area of the entire earth once.

Our culture of consumerism and buy-whatever-the-hell-catches-your-fancy society is destroying our home!

I came across a publication called ReadyMade. It promotes creative uses for old items. I should have entered the contest for making use of old hangers.


I'm not suggesting you reuse your feminine hygiene products to make something cool . . . please don't do that. That's grotesque. Just stop buying and stop throwing stuff away in my yard.

Peace.

Twain, you Cookie

plane delayed again
the new yorker and mark twain
privilege of the grave
__________________________________________________________

While travelling, I picked up the New Yorker and read an essay written by Mark Twain. Published for the first time a few months ago, Privilege of the Grave illustrates how the First Amendment is embodied beyond life. Here's an excerpt:

An unpopular opinion concerning politics or religion lies concealed in the breast of every man; in many cases not only one sample, but several. The more intelligent the man, the larger the freightage of this kind of opinions he carries, and keeps to himself. There is not one individual--including the reader and myself--who is not the possessor of dear and cherished unpopular convictions which common wisdom forbids him to utter. Sometimes we suppress an opinion for reasons that are a credit to us, not a discredit, but oftenest we suppress an unpopular opinion because we cannot afford the bitter cost of putting it forth. None of us likes to be hated, none of us likes to be shunned.

A natural result of these conditions is, that we consciously pay more attention to tuning our opinions to our neighbor's pitch and preserving his approval than we do to examining the opinions searchingly and seeing to it that they are right and sound. This custom naturally produces another result: public opinion being born and reared on this plan, it is not opinion at all, it is merely policy; there is no reflection back of it, no principle, and it is entitled to no respect.

Twain, Mark. "Privilege of the Grave." The New Yorker Dec 2008.

Buried in the Sand

I was talking to my sister today about our childhood. I told her about how I have been increasingly fascinated by our upraising in a Korean home.

I've really wanted to start writing about how distinctly different our "Korean American" lives were from others while we were growing up. She mentioned something that I had forgotten for so long . . .

We had the best sandbox growing up. It filled the length of our backyard. Past the perfectly mowed grass that our dad maintained dutifully. So dutifully that even when Kathy and I begged to mow the lawn - we were denied with great intensity.

I remember the day the sand came.

I never knew that sand came in a big dump truck. I guess I just assumed that it was just where it landed. The enormous truck full of sand backed up across the perfectly manicured grass and dumped its load - so inelegantly. Was this really what our sand box would look like? A mound of left over remains from such an uncouth truck?

Within a few hours the sand was leveled and our sandbox was transformed yet again with an addition of a swing set. Kathy and I were given a golden gift that extended the expanse of our yard. What joy that our parents would so unselfishly give such a great gift.

However, being in an industrious Korean household, there had to be more than one use for the glorious golden sandbox.

Every late fall my dad would be instructed to bring in large buckets from the shed and line them with garbage bags. It was time for kimjang.

A large silver pot, big enough for small children to bathe in, was taken outside. Heads of cabbage - dozens of them - were salted and soaked for the entire day. Mom and Dad washed the cabbage, sometimes enlisting the help of Kathy and I, then marinated in pepper powder, garlic and a host of other seasoning.

While mom packed the cabbage in the buckets, dad dug holes in our golden sand box. Sometimes the ground would already be partially frozen. I don't think Kathy and I knew the full extent of what our parents were doing until the snow melted in the spring.

Spring reawakened our love for our golden sandbox. It was like finding a treasure when we found buckets full of kimchee in our box.

Kathy told me that she always thought this was normal - who doesn't find buckets full of kimchee in their sandbox in the spring?

I wonder if my parents ever forgot about a bucket or two. I hope they did. It would be such a treasure for the kids who reawaken their curiosity in the spring.

ㅋ~ㅋ~

For over ten years now I've been actively pursuing the Korean language. I say pursue because that's exactly what it is. Having been ten years, there are only two things to reasons why I haven't yet mastered it:



1) I'm no good.

2) It's stinkin' hard.



Regardless, I must say that my fondness for the Korean language has grown immensely. Something I've noticed about the Korean language is that each word is packed with meaning. When I hear Koreans speak, they're words are much more than just words - they are feelings.

I always find it interesting and find that I'm often jealous at how poetic and thoughtful Koreans are with what they say. Even insults are funnier in Korean.

I've been following a Korean Star Variety Show (basically a reality show with Korean models, singers and musicians) called We Got Married. In this show, two stars are paired together to fake a marriage for a few months. There's a couple that has been designated the Ant Couple because the "husband," Crown J looks like an ant. In an interview So Inyoung (the "wife") gets so frustrated because she tries to out-do Crown J's romantics - and never seems to be able to be more sweet or romantic than he is. So she says "이 사람은 네 모리 의에있구나" (roughly translated as "this person is always above my head" or this person is always a head above me).

It may just be that I am overly fascinated by the language. But, I'd like to attribute the richness of the language to Korea's long history and culture.

Regardless, I'm signing out with a phrase I just learned that sounds so much more fun in Korean.

"YingGuaEngBo SaPilGuiJung"
"What goes around comes around"

Undone

11 unread books, 3 canvasses with little or no paint and 3 pumps with no heels - is it just that I'm lazy or is it that with time projects, relationships or books just aren't as important to finish?


Why is it that unfinished anythings seem to get easier to leave undone? Is it easier to let the abrasiveness of guilt wear away at your a life of content or is it worth it to just let it go? I would think that after time the thing needing to be done would just disappear, right?